In last week’s introduction to small business branding, we talked about the six criteria on which the strength of a brand can be measured; recognition, consistency, emotion, uniqueness, adaptability, and management.

Today we’re going to focus on the importance of consistency. This is a topic that was covered very thoroughly in a great post by our friends at Vistaprint on the Microbusiness Perspectives blog. Writer/Editor Robbie Vogel outlined four key reasons why your brand identity must remain consistent in order to achieve the best results for your business:
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DifferentiationYou want your business to be the first thing that customers think about when they need a product or service in your industry. That goal will be hard to achieve if you don’t have a tight, consistent brand identity. For example, if you continually change your colors or logo, it will be difficult for people to remember your business when faced with several different choices. You need to pick colors and a logo that sets you apart from your competition and makes you easy to remember.

LegitimacyA consistent brand identity makes your business seem more legitimate. It’s no wonder that multinational brands like Chevrolet and McDonald’s have very defined logos and colors. These brand identities have become so well-known that people can identify the company if they’re only shown the logo. Try to emulate this with your company. Make sure your logo, colors, font, and layout are consistent across all branded materials.

Overall ImpressionIn order to know how your customers will perceive your business, you need to know how people normally interact with brands in the first place. Global Head of Brand Design at Facebook, Paul Adams, wrote an interesting piece stating that people build brand relationships through many, lightweight interactions over time. Because of this, it’s crucial that your brand identity remain consistent. That way, every time a potential customer comes into contact with your brand, he/she sees the same brand identity and makes connections with your business.

Customer ClarityIn the same vein as the previous section, your brand identity needs to remain consistent so that everyone has the same idea of your business. For example, if the logos and colors on your lawn signs are different from those on your flyers, you might be losing business without even knowing it. A customer’s purchase decision is a very fragile process, and you should do as much as you can to make it an easy decision.